Home
by OhGoodEvans
Summary: Evelyn had cycled hundreds of children through the foster care system, but there were some children who stuck with her, such as Andrew Johnson, a boy who stayed in Evelyn's care for two years, but along with his daughter Ellis, stayed in her heart. This story follows Ellis as she grows up with the Mercer boys, and leads right up to and through the movies events. (Jack x OC story)
1. Chapter 1

**NOTE:** Not sure if anyone reads these, but I'm real nervous and somewhat excited about finally publishing this story. I have been working on this story for a very long, two years and it has gone through so much change. But here is the end product, so I hope you enjoy it.

 **I own nothing, except for the original characters (Andrew Johnson, Natalie King and Ellis Johnson).**

Evelyn had spent most of her life looking after children; from babysitting as a teenager to having four children of her own, she had always loved caring for kids. Some of the children would spend mere hours with her like Diana, the daughter of her childhood neighbours, while others, like Bobby, had lived with her for years. A lot of children she had cared for maintained contact years later, even when they had been adopted by other families. Evelyn loved each and every child that had been in her care, however, a few children, had developed a special bond with the woman, a bond which could not be broken.

Andy Johnson was one of those children. He began living with Evelyn at age sixteen; when his parents, Elizabeth and William, died in a car accident. After his parent's death, he had become a troublemaker, flipping out at foster parents who tried to replace his real parents. However, Evelyn used a different approach, and became a mentor to Andy and not a mother. Eventually his behaviour improved, and he got accepted into college in New York.

Evelyn watched as Andy received his high school diploma, shaking the principals hand as everyone clapped. The boy's eyes scanned the crowd, and when his eyes met Evelyn's a large smile covered his face. After the ceremony finished, Evelyn waited with the other guests and was surprised when Andy walked over and hugged her. Andy had never really shown affection to anyone, so the simple gesture meant a lot from him.

"What was that for?" Evelyn asked when he pulled away.

"I want to say thank you for putting up with my shit these past few years. I now realise what an asshole I was and I'm grateful for your help. Thanks for helping me turn my life around Evelyn." He replied.

"Your welcome Andy, but it wasn't just me, you worked for this too. I guess we need to work on that potty-mouth of yours next though." Evelyn laughed as Andy quickly apologised.

Soon after, Andy went off to college, doing a degree in Maths. He kept in contact with Evelyn, and even visited her during the holidays. After completing his degree, Andy stayed in New York, getting a job at a local bank and moving into an apartment with a few of his college friends. He worked hard, behaved and tried to be the person that Evelyn wanted him to be; he saw her as a Mother, despite only being in her care for two years, and wanted to make her proud of him and his accomplishments.

It was a Saturday morning and after a long week of working hard, Andy was enjoying staying in bed. He planned to do nothing with his weekend but sleep, only leaving his bed for food and bathroom breaks. However, his plans were ruined when someone began knocking at the apartment door. Chris, his friend and roommate was out, so Andy was forced to leave his bed. Clad in just an old shirt and his underwear, Andy headed toward the door, and upon opening it he saw no-one there. He just groaned, deciding that it was probably just some kids pulling a stupid prank. Until he heard a gurgling noise from below him, and that's when he saw it. In front of him on the floor, there was a carry cot, with a young baby and an envelope inside. Andy stepped through the door frame and looked either way, looking if he could see who had left the baby, but the corridor was empty.

The baby gurgled again, and Andy looked over, looking at the baby and then the envelope that was addressed to him. He picked the cot up, gently carrying it into the apartment and placing it upon the dining table. Andy then took the envelope, sat at the table, and then took out the letter. He looked up at the cot and then began to read the letter.

 _'Dear Andy,_

 _I'm not sure if you remember me but nine months ago, we met in Frankie's Bar. We had a few drinks together and then we went back to your place and slept together. We lay in bed that next morning, just talking, and with now sobered minds we found that we were too different and we would never work. We agreed to move on with our lives and I was willing to keep to that rule, but then I found out I was pregnant, and as I hadn't slept with anyone else, it could have only been yours._

 _I'm going to be honest with you, I'm going to Medical School soon and having a child is only going to hold me back, and that's why at first, I was going to get rid of the baby. But then while at dinner with a friend, I overheard a woman talking about how she had just found out she could not have children, and how it broke her heart. After a lot of thinking I then came to a realisation, just because I didn't want a child, there were people all over who could not have children, but so desperately wanted them. So, I decided to go through with the pregnancy, and put the baby up for adoption._

 _And then yesterday, after only given birth a few weeks ago, I was at the adoption agency, preparing to give the baby away. But then I remembered the things you told me that morning, about how you couldn't wait to be married and how you wanted lots of children. I may not want children, not now or ever, but you do. So, take care of her Andy, fall in love, find her a mother who will love her like you do._

 _Natalie'_

After reading the letter, Andy placed it on the table and reached into the envelope, pulling out a birth certificate and reading it over; the birth date indicated that she was born just three weeks ago; 20 – 02 – 1986. Under father was his full name, 'Andrew Johnson' and under mother was 'Natalie King', but the space under name was left blank. Andy looked up at the baby girl in front of him, her eyes exploring the space around her as she made small gurgling noises. He couldn't help but smile at her, as he took her from the cot, holding her in his arms. She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen and he couldn't take his eyes off her. He was a dad, and this precious little girl was his daughter. Andy knew raising a kid wasn't going to be easy, but he was going to try his hardest

"Well if you're going to be living here, we're gonna have to shopping. And we're going to have to give you a name, can't call you 'her' forever." Andy spoke as he rocked his daughter back and forth. He thought for a while, a few names coming to mind, but none of them seeming right. The name Elizabeth popped into his head, but it didn't seem to suit the young girl. However, he still wanted to honour his mother, and decided that a name beginning with 'e' would be a good substitute.

"Eve? Eva? Ella? Ellie?" Andy spoke aloud, but she just stared up at him, her wide eyes never leaving his, "Ellis? Ellis, I like that, how about you?" She gurgled happily and Andy took that as a yes, smiling at her. Before doing anything else, Andy decided to call Evelyn, to tell her all about Ellis.


	2. Chapter 2

**I own nothing, except for the original characters (Andrew Johnson and Ellis Johnson).**

 _Nine months later_

It was little under a year later that Evelyn first met Ellis, when Andy took her to Detroit to spend Christmas at the Mercer household. In the time since Andy had moved out, Evelyn had cared for a number of children, most of them moving on to other families who would later adopt them. Currently in the house, there was just one child, Bobby, who had been living with Evelyn for two years. He had never lasted as long with other families, because they could never handle his bad behaviour. But Evelyn wasn't going to just give up on the fifteen-year-old, no matter how many fights he got in to or how many times he was suspended from school.

"She's gorgeous Andrew, your parents would be proud." Evelyn spoke as the ten-month-old sat upon her lap, playing with the pendant on her necklace. Andy smiled at Evelyn, as he thought about his parents, wishing they were here to see their grandchild. It was Christmas Eve and they were all sat in the living room, as an old Christmas movie played on the TV. Ellis began fussing, so Evelyn placed her upon the floor and continued her conversation with Andy. As soon as she was on the floor, Ellis began crawling around, playing with anything she could find. Eventually she reached the couch where Bobby was sat, and she stopped, looking up at the boy.

"Up." Ellis babbled, her hands reaching up towards the teen. Bobby looked away from the TV and down at the infant, who was looking back at him with big green eyes. After a few seconds of hesitation, Bobby gave in and reached down, lifting the girl up and sitting her down next to him. Not content with sitting on the couch cushion, Ellis climbed onto Bobby's lap, and to stop her falling, he was forced to hold onto her. Within the hour, the infant had fell asleep against Bobby's chest, her slumber helped by the teen gently rocking her back and forth. Evelyn looked over at her adopted son, as he held onto the infant, his arms loosely wrapped around her, and she knew that a very special bond had formed. She knew that Bobby would protect that little girl no matter what.

 _One Year Later_

It became tradition for Andy and Ellis to visit during the Christmas period, along with a few weekend visits during the rest of the year. It was the Ellis' second birthday, and due to it falling on a Saturday, Ellis was able to spend her birthday in Detroit. It was the Saturday afternoon and Ellis was having fun with her new building blocks as Evelyn cooked dinner. Andy was at the local ice rink with now seventeen-year old Bobby and new addition, thirteen-year-old Jeremiah, playing Hockey.

The quiet of the house was disturbed when Bobby stormed in, Andy and Jeremiah following behind.

"This is fucking bullshit!" Bobby screamed as he made his way through the house. Andy grabbed onto him and pushed him against the wall, Evelyn running into the hallway to stop anything breaking out between the two. They had been playing a friendly game of hockey with some local kids when a much older kid pushed Jerry to the ground, causing him to have a nosebleed. Jerry decided that he just wanted to go home, but Bobby had already seen red and began to show the kid just why he gained the nickname 'Michigan Mauler." It took Andy a whole ten minutes to pull Bobby from the fight and throw him into his car, where he proceeded to cuss out the man.

"Listen Bobby, I was just like you, thinking that I was a big man who could solve all my problems with my fists but that doesn't work in the real world, and you need to learn that." Andy spoke as he faced a furious Bobby. Noticing that something was going on in the hallway, Ellis stood and hobbled over, seeing her Dad telling Bobby that he had to behave. Bobby just laughed and told him 'to quit the bullshit'.

"What is bullshit?" Ellis asked innocently, and was confused when everyone looked at her with a shocked expression. Bobby just began laughing, but soon stopped when Andy and Evelyn glared at him. Andy stepped over to his daughter, and knelt next to her.

"That is a bad word sweetheart, you don't say that okay?" He explained, but the dark-haired infant was still confused.

"But Bobby said it."

"Bobby should know better." Evelyn spoke up, as she glared at her adopted son who was once again laughing. Ellis just nodded at her Dad, and then looked over at Jeremiah, and gasped when she saw the blood on his face.

"Jerry, are you okay?" She asked concerned. She may have only just met the boy when she and her dad arrived last night, but she had already been talking to him none stop about everything, which just amused the teen boy. Jerry explained to Ellis that 'a big boy' had pushed him and he'd fallen over, and the little girl just frowned before whispering,

 _'That's bullshit.'_

 _Two years later_

The week before Ellis was due to start kindergarten, she stopped at Evelyn's, while Andy was attending a work convention in Washington. When asked if she was okay to look after Ellis for a few days, Evelyn jumped at the opportunity – as she now had three sons, she found it nice to have a girl around. She especially enjoyed having Ellis around, because the little girl was always well behaved, unlike her sons; nineteen-year-old Bobby, fifteen-year-old Jerry and twelve-year-old Angel. Evelyn loved each one of them very much, but she could swear that they all went looking for trouble.

It was a nice summers day, so Evelyn had taken Ellis, Angel and Jerry to the local park, Bobby promising to meet them after he finished his shift at the garage. They were all currently feasting upon the picnic that Evelyn had bought along and talking about school, which was starting in a few days.

"So, El, you looking forward to school?" Angel asked as he finished his sandwich, throwing the crusts away. Ellis just looked at the older boy with the evillest look she could muster. Since arriving at Evelyn's she had not stopped speaking about how much she did not want to go to school, but the boys just teased her about it.

"Don't worry Ellis, schools not bad. I like school." Jerry inputted.

"Bobby said only nerds like school. That means you're a nerd." Ellis replied, as she munched upon her sandwich. Angel burst into laughter, while Jerry was left gob smacked and Evelyn just shook her head smiling.

Despite her worries, Ellis settled into school well, and she worked hard just like her Dad and Evelyn had told her to. At parent-teacher meetings, her teachers would tell Andy that she was a pleasure to teach and was a very intelligent girl. Andy was very proud of his daughter, and would call Evelyn at least once a week reporting upon how well Ellis was doing. The two of them continued to visit Evelyn regularly, Andy becoming a male influence in the boys lives and Ellis becoming like a younger sister to them.


	3. Chapter 3

**I own nothing - Except original characters (Andrew + Ellis Johnson)**

 _Five years later_

It was years later, upon her ninth birthday that Ellis first met ten-year-old Jack, and she was surprised to see how different he was to his adopted brothers. He was very quiet, he isolated himself and seemed to cower away from trouble instead of running towards it. Jack had been living with Evelyn for nine months; and in that time Andy and Ellis had not visited Detroit, as Jack struggled to settle in and Evelyn didn't want him overwhelmed by strangers. Andy easily understood this, especially after Evelyn told him of all the horrible things past foster parents had done to the young boy. But Ellis, on the other hand, didn't understand why she couldn't visit Evelyn and the boys, which only caused her to feel low and dejected.

When Andy received a call from Evelyn, the week before Ellis' birthday, asking if they would like to visit, he was relieved. He didn't like seeing his daughter so sad, and believed that this would be just the news she wanted. So, a week later the two found themselves at Evelyn's house, Ellis rambling on to Andy about all the things she needed to tell everyone.

"I need to tell Evelyn about my spelling test last week and then I'll tell Bobby all about that stupid boy Peter, he'll beat him up for me right Dad?" Andy laughed, and lead Ellis to the houses front door, opening it and letting the two of them into the Mercer house, just like they did any time they visited. The first person they came across was Bobby, who was immediately excited to see them.

"Hey little ass-kicker! Happy Birthday!" He shouted as he picked Ellis up, spinning her around as she laughed. Upon hearing commotion Evelyn came down the stairs, smiling when she saw the interaction between Bobby and Ellis. The young girl jumped out of Bobby's arms and ran to Evelyn, hugging the elder woman, who wished her a happy birthday.

"Me and Daddy have missed you all so much!" Ellis said excitedly.

"We missed you too sweetheart." Evelyn replied, and then looked over at Andy, "But Jack's all settled in now, so you're welcome to visit whenever you want. Talking of which, I think you should meet him. Follow me." Andy put his and Ellis' bags down by the coat rack and then held his hand out to Ellis who took it and then followed him and Evelyn upstairs. They arrived at a door which was closed, and Evelyn knocked on it, calling out to Jack.

"Come in." A low voice replied. Evelyn opened the door and stepped into the room, Andy and Ellis following. On the far side of the room was a desk and at it, sat a young boy, who Ellis presumed to be Jack. After finishing what he was writing, he looked over at them and smiled slightly.

"Jack, sweetie, these are the people I told you about, Andy and Ellis, come and say hello." Evelyn spoke softly, and Jack stood, walking over to the three of them. He looked over at Andy first and smiled,

"It's nice to meet you, sir." He spoke politely, holding his hand out to the older male.

"It's nice to meet you too Jack, but please just call me Andy." Andy replied, shaking the young boys hand. Jack nodded and then turned to Ellis, who had a sour look upon her face. If this boy was Jack, then from what she knew from her father, it was because of him that she hadn't been able to visit Evelyn or the boys. It was because of him that it had been almost a year since she last visited Detroit.

"Hi I'm Jack, you must be Ellis, I've been looking forward to meeting you." He said, once again holding his hand out.

"Well, that's nice but I don't like you, I haven't seen Evelyn for months and that's all your fault. Jack." She replied, ignoring his hand. Andy gasped at her choice of words, but Ellis didn't seem to understand what was so shocking about it. Evelyn and Andy looked at each other, and Andy smiled apologetically,

"Tell her." Evelyn mouthed, looking down at the young girl who was glaring at Jack. Andy lead Ellis out of Jack's room and into Evelyn's bedroom, lifting her up and sitting her upon the bed. She looked back at her Dad, confused about what was going on.

"I want you to listen to what I'm about to say, do you understand that?" Andy spoke, taking Ellis' hands in his own. The young girl looked back at her father, her wide green eyes staring back at him. She recognised that her father's tone was serious, and therefore knew that the upcoming conversation was going to be a consequential one. Andy took a deep sigh and then looked at his daughter.

"Just like Bobby, Jerry and Angel, Jack has been adopted by Evelyn. Some children are left behind by their real parents, so other people choose to take care of them. But some of these people, they aren't good and they don't look after the children properly." Andy started, and Ellis just nodded, keeping silent.

"And then sometimes, these people would hurt the children. Bobby, Jerry, Angel and Jack have all lived with people who hurt them; who would hit them and throw them around. Eventually Evelyn finds the boys, and she treats them nicely and she takes care of them. But by time they meet Evelyn, they've seen so much bad, they can't recognise the good. Do you understand?"

"I understand." Ellis said, the stories of bad people, bringing tears to her eyes. Andy wiped the tears from her cheeks and then kissed each of them.

"So, that's why we couldn't visit Evelyn. Jack had seen so much worse that he needed a little more time to get used to having a good family. So, we had to wait a while so that Jack could feel happy and safe here. You know I love you very much and so does Evelyn, but Jack isn't used to people loving him like you are, he just needed time was all." Andy finished. Ellis nodded and jumped down from the bed.

"I think I need to say sorry. I wasn't very nice to Jack, just like those bad people." She explained to her Dad, who looked at her in confusion. Andy smiled at his daughter, feeling proud that she had understood what he had said, and that what she had said was wrong. Andy kissed her hair, telling her that he was very proud of her and that he loved her.

"I love you too Daddy." She spoke and then walked over to Jack's bedroom, where she saw the boy sat on his bed as Evelyn comforted him. Ellis saw that he had been crying and she felt very bad. She walked further into the room and stood in front of the boy, smiling sadly at him as she herself, tried not to cry.

"I am very sorry for the mean thing I said. My Daddy told me about how the people were bad to you and I'm sorry for that too. But Evelyn, she is very nice and she'll look after you like she looked after my Daddy." Ellis explained, her voice stuttering as a few tears fell from her eyes. Jack smiled at Ellis,

"It's okay, you didn't know." He looked over at Evelyn, who nodded at him. While Andy was explaining Jack's situation to Ellis, Evelyn was talking to Jack. She told him that Ellis was only young and she didn't understand a lot, and then told him that he should forgive her. Evelyn then told him that he should make a peace offering to Ellis, telling him that she believed that he and Ellis could be very good friends.

"Would you like to see my guitar?" Jack asked as he pointed at a black bag which was sat at the foot of his bed. Ellis looked over at the bag and then back at Jack, nodding.

"Yes please." She spoke, wiping away her tears, attempting a smile. Evelyn then left the room, leaving the two kids to get to know one another and spend time together. Andy stood outside the room and smiled at Evelyn, who just smiled back.

"Come on Andy, let's go get a drink and you can tell me about this new job position of yours." She spoke, both briefly looking back at the two children; Jack was playing guitar and Ellis was watching with admiration.

Evelyn was right about Jack and Ellis, the two children quickly becoming good friends. Every time Ellis was in Detroit she spent ninety percent of her time with Jack, who always looked forward to the Johnson's visits. Both had plenty of friends at school, but they were each other's best friends, talking to each other at least once a week. Andy calling Evelyn once a week to catch up on each other's lives turned into Ellis and Jack talking for hours. But neither of the adults minded, knowing that their children had found a friend for life.


	4. Chapter 4

**Nothing belongs to me - except the Original Characters**

 **Note - Thanks to** ** _Kristenalexis1040_** **who reviewed my story! I was convinced that no one wrote/read FB fanfiction anymore.**

Five years later

"So, they took him away in a cop car last night and we haven't heard from him since. Ma's down the police station now, trying to get him out. But I don't think it'll work this time." Jack explained through the phone. It was a Friday afternoon, and Ellis was home alone, her Dad at the store buying groceries. Five years had passed since Jack and Ellis had met, and the two still called each other all the time. Ellis was no longer a young, naïve child; she had just turned fourteen a week ago, and was growing into a beautiful young woman.

"Well do you think he did it? Do you think he assaulted that man?" Ellis asked as she sat upon the love seat, a movie playing on the television. The two of them were discussing Bobby, who had supposedly got into a fight which ended with a man being put in hospital. This wasn't the first time that Bobby had ended up in a cell; he had gotten into plenty of fights before and had caused a lot of trouble. However, it seemed that this time it was more serious and that Bobby wouldn't get away so easily, and might have to spend more than just a night behind bars.

"This is Bobby we're talking about El, he's got a temper, which gets even worse when he's been drinking. And according to the police, he had drunk a lot." Jack answered. Ellis smiled sadly, because she knew that Bobby did have a temper and that he probably did assault a man; but part of her couldn't believe that the person who had taught her how to ice-skate, how to face her fears, and someone who was always so gentle with her had turned around and hospitalised a man.

"I suppose that's true, it's just, you know…" She spoke, struggling to speak.

"Hard to believe that Bobby, the person who used to look after us and be so kind to us, has got himself arrested." Jack replied, knowing just what Ellis was thinking.

"Yeah. It's just unbelievable." Ellis confirmed,

"Well, Ma just got back so I suppose I should get going. I'll speak to you soon, see you later El,"

"Bye-bye Cracker-Jack." Ellis smiled, hearing as Jack jokingly sighed and then hung up. She returned the phone to its place and then sat back upon the sofa, going back to watch the movie. Not even five minutes later, Andy walked through the door, arms full of groceries. Ellis stood and walked across the apartment to the kitchen, and began to help her Dad put away the shopping. The two of them made small talk, discussed the situation with Bobby, and then Andy told her that he had some news.

"Good or bad?" Ellis simply asked as she continued to unpack the shopping and put it in the appropriate place. Andy smiled and then took a second to think of his response.

"Well it depends really. You might think its good news, and you might not." He replied, and Ellis turned to him, a questioning glance aimed at her father, "We're going to be moving into a house. And this house is in Detroit, right down the road from Evelyn." Andy continued, as he tried to gage his daughter's reaction. Ellis' small smile, turned into full on shock, as she gasped, and then smiled widely, letting out an excited shriek.

"Really?" She squealed, "We're moving to Detroit?!" Andy simply nodded, and Ellis ran to him, throwing her arms around him, and he put his arms around her. The father and daughter hugged each other, both happy to be moving close to Evelyn, the woman who was the closest thing to family they had.

Less than a month later, at the end of March, Ellis and Andy packed all their stuff into a moving van and moved to Detroit. Evelyn, Jerry and Jack helped them move into the house. Bobby was still in custody, and Angel had just returned to his duties as a Marine, so were both unable to help. Their new house was a decent size; downstairs there was a front room, a kitchen, dining room and a utility room. The upstairs had two large bedrooms, one which had an en-suite and then a large family bathroom. It was the perfect size for the two of them, plus Evelyn only lived around the corner.

To celebrate their first night in Detroit, the two of them stayed in the house, ordered pizza and watched a whole bunch of films. The of them spent the night watching all the Disney classics, singing along to all the songs, and laughing. Ellis loved spending times like this with her Dad, and hoped that now they had a house they would be able to spend more time together. Recently, Andy had been working a lot, and coming home late, so time spent with his only daughter was rare. Now that they lived in a smaller city, and his job wasn't so demanding, the two decided that at least one day of the week would be dedicated to them spending time together.

After their fourth film, Andy realised how late it had gotten and sent Ellis up to bed, following behind. The next day they were going to Evelyn's for dinner, and so needed to wake up early, so they could help. Ellis walked into her room, which at that point, consisted of a bed, wardrobe and boxes full of her belongings. The bedroom looked quite boring, but Ellis was determined that by the end of the week it would look a lot better, less like a storage unit and more like a bedroom.

The teen collapsed onto her bed, with heavy eyes and a stomach full of pizza. Andy knocked on the door and then popped his head around, peeking into the room. Ellis opened her one eye, peering back at her Dad, smiling.

"Goodnight sweetheart."

"Night Dad, love you." She mumbled tiredly, yawning afterwards.

"I love you too. Now get some sleep." Andy laughed, and then slowly shut the door before heading to his own room.


	5. Chapter 5

**I own nothing, except the original characters.**

 **Note: This chapter is a lot longer than the previous one's have been, and introduces two new characters, Elishia and Chloe, named for my two closest friends who have been as invested in this fic as I have, and given me some great ideas towards it. Also, thanks to all my Uni friends that may be reading this, means a lot 3**

It had been nine months since Andy and Ellis moved to Detroit and Christmas was just a few weeks away. Ellis had settled in well, and was three months into her first year of high school. She had already made a few friends, but tended to hang out with Elishia Parker and Chloe Wilson, two close friends she had made in middle school. However, her closest friend was still Jack, even though she was a freshman, and he was a sophomore. The pair of them walked to and from school together, and only lived around the corner from one another; so, they spent a lot of time together.

It was a Wednesday afternoon, school had just finished, so Ellis stood outside the school's entry waiting for Jack. While she waited, she spoke to Elishia and Chloe, about the Christmas Dance. The girls had already decided that they would go, and had agreed that they would go shopping that weekend for dresses and shoes. Jack walked over to the girls, interrupting their conversation.

"What were you guys talking about?" Jack asked curiously, looking over at Ellis as they began their walk. She explained that they were talking about, and then asked if he would be attending the dance, knowing that Jack would probably say no, dances weren't exactly his thing. The boy just shook his head, confirming her suspicions.

Soon enough they got to Evelyn's, both going inside. Andy worked every day until five, so Ellis would spend the time between arriving home from school and her dad coming home, at Evelyn's. The two teens walked into the kitchen, saying hello to Evelyn, who asked them about their days. Soon enough they were talking about the school dance, and that's when Jack retreated to his room. The two women laughed and then continued their conversation, Evelyn offering to help Ellis with her hair and makeup.

"And there you go, we are done." Evelyn spoke as she put down the curlers. It was the night of the dance and Ellis was sat at the dressing room table in Evelyn's room, as the woman had helped her get ready. Her hair had been loosely curled, and Evelyn had done her make up. Usually her hair was in its natural wavy state, and when it came to make up, she would only wear a layer of mascara. "Right, I'm going to leave you to get into your dress and shoes."

Ellis walked over to the dress and slipped it on, and then she put on her shoes, finishing off her look. It was cream-coloured dress, which was strapless with a sweetheart neckline and a curvy silhouette. It was made from a neutral lining with a floral lace overlay atop. Ellis then walked out of Evelyn's room and shut the door behind her, heading towards the stairs, when she heard a guitar strum coming from Jack's room. Ellis turned from the stairs, and walked over to his door, knocking on it lightly.

"Come in." Jack's voice grumbled, and Ellis could almost guarantee that he was too busy playing guitar to respond properly. She just smiled, and pushed the door open, and her thoughts were confirmed, he was looking down at his guitar, an open notebook at his side as he held a pen between his teeth. Ellis watched as he'd scribble something in the book and then play a note on his guitar. Lately she found herself looking at Jack differently, and watching him so invested is something he loved made her feel all warm, and caused a smile to cover her face.

"How do I look?" She asked, breaking the silence, and after a moment, he looked up at her. As soon as his eyes landed on her, Jack felt as if some force had pushed the breath out of him, she looked amazing. He thought she looked like an angel and then tried to convince himself that it was normal to think of his best friend like that.

"You look beautiful El." He finally spoke and she felt her face get hot, a blush covering her cheeks. Ellis blamed it on the fact that she had received a compliment, and not that it was Jack that had complimented her. She just shrugged it off and smirked at him,

"You saying that I'm usually ugly?" She teased and he almost choked, because no, he'd never thought she was ugly, but if anyone knew that, he'd never live it down. Ellis just laughed at his reaction, "I'm just kidding Jack, I'll see you later okay?"

"Okay El, have fun!" He called and once she had left his room, and closed the door, he went back to his guitar, needing a distraction. Ellis carried on downstairs and met her Dad at the bottom of the stairs, and she could swear that he was almost crying. Andy looked over at his only daughter, and he couldn't help but smile, she was growing up so quickly. His brown eyes met her green eyes and they both smiled.

"You look amazing sweetheart. It's hard to believe that you'll be fifteen in February." He spoke and she stepped forward, hugging him around his waist, and he hugged back, kissing her hair. A horn beeped outside and Ellis looked up to see that it was Elishia's mom, who had offered to take the girls to the dance. The girl hugged her dad again, and then after grabbing her bag, said goodbye to everyone. Andy watched his daughter walk out of the front door, a proud smile on his face.

"Elizabeth and William would be proud of you Andrew; you've raised a beautiful young woman." Evelyn commented, and Andy smiled, wishing that his parents were here to see their granddaughter.

Ellis had been dancing for an hour straight, and therefore decided to take a break. She walked over the drinks table, picking up a cup and pouring some punch into it.

"Excuse me." Ellis turned to see that she was blocking the punch, so she apologised, before standing out of the way. Ellis noticed the boy looking at her,

"Sorry, you're Ellis Johnson, aren't you?" The boy asked and Ellis nodded, confused as she did not recognise the boy. "I'm Aaron Stark, I'm a friend of Jack's, he talks about you a lot, you know."

"He does?" Ellis asked, her interest peaked. Aaron nodded and then took a sip of his drink,

"Yeah, I think he likes you." Ellis blushed at Aaron's comment, "But he's too chicken shit to do anything about it. Anyway, it was nice to finally meet you." Aaron finished and walked away, when a friend called him over. Ellis was left on her own again, thinking about what Aaron had said, when a blonde girl approached her, not knowing who the girl was she just looked down at her cup, which was still quite full.

"Right, I don't know who you are, nor do I particularly care. But Aaron is my boyfriend, and I'd appreciate if you kept your claws off him." The girl spoke, and then purposely knocked Ellis' cup, the liquid spilling down her dress, staining the fabric. "Oh sorry, I've ruined your dress. But on second thoughts, it was ruined the moment you put it on."

The girl walked away, not giving Ellis a chance to defend herself and instead, left the girl in shock, she hadn't meant any harm by speaking to Aaron, but obviously, his girlfriend felt differently. Elishia and Chloe, having seen the whole thing, approached their friend, who looked up at them with tears in her eyes. They each grabbed one of her hands in their own and pulled her to the bathroom, and then got to work; Chloe drying her eyes as Elishia dabbed on her dress with some tissue.

"Just leave it, it's ruined." Ellis sobbed, as she looked down at her dress, no longer feeling pretty, maybe she shouldn't have bothered coming to the dance, "I think I'll just go home."

Five minutes later, the three of the girls stood outside, waiting for Evelyn to arrive. After doing their best to clean up Ellis' dress and tidying up her smudged make up, Chloe and Elishia asked her if she wanted to leave, respecting her wishes when she decided that she did. Knowing that her Dad was out with friends that night, she called Evelyn, asking if she could come pick her up, and that she would explain what had happened later. Elishia and Chloe had offered to go home with her, but she refused telling them to stay and have fun. After a brief argument, they decided to stay, but wait until Ellis was safe in Evelyn's car until they went back inside.

Ellis sat in the passenger seat of Evelyn's car, her head pressed again the cold window, as she sniffled slightly. She had already explained what had happened to Evelyn, and despite her best efforts, she cried again. Evelyn just pulled the girl into a hug, comforting her and promising that everything was okay. They were now on their way home, and Evelyn was telling Ellis that she didn't need to worry about anything, because she had done nothing wrong. Ellis knew this, but it didn't stop the words the girl spoke from hurting.

They arrived back at the Mercer household, and in silence both walked into the house.

"Hey Evelyn?" Ellis called as the elder woman walked into the kitchen, the woman turning to her, "Can I stay here tonight?" She asked, her voice dejected, her face showing that all she wanted to do was cry.

"Of course, sweetheart, you can take Bobby's room, I'll let your Dad know." Ellis nodded and then turned towards the stairs, "You can use some of his clothes to sleep in, just leave your dress in the laundry basket." Once Evelyn finished talking, Ellis kicked off her shoes, picked them up and then ran up the stairs and straight into Bobby's room, shutting the door behind her. She quickly unfastened the dress and then raided Bobby's wardrobe, pulling on one of his old hockey shirts. It still smelt like Bobby, and she found herself wishing that he was around to make her laugh.

No one had seen Bobby in months, and thus, people hardly ever spoke of him. After he hospitalised the man all those months ago, he was charged with assault and sentenced to six months in prison. During his stay in prison, he refused any visitors, not wanting his mother, brothers or anyone else see him in there. When the time came around for his release, he seemingly disappeared of the face of the earth, instead of coming home, he just left. Bobby had called Evelyn once since his release, telling her that he was alive, and that he just needed time. That was back in September.

Ellis picked up the dress from the floor and then walked out of Bobby's room and over to Evelyn's room, putting the dress into the laundry basket. She knew that the stain would not come out of the dress, but she would thank Evelyn for trying anyway. Walking out of the room, Ellis sighed, all she wanted to was curl in a ball and sleep, it had been an eventful night. Jack's door opened and he stood at the door, she looked over at him, smiling sadly and he gestured to his room, and she silently followed him into his room. He sat on his bed, against the wall, leaving room for her to sit down. She fell next to him and leant her head on his shoulder as he wrapped his arm around her.

The two teens sat in silence for a while, the only sound was the quiet music that played from Jack's stereo.

"I spoke to Aaron Stark, his girlfriend got jealous and she poured a drink on me." Ellis finally explained, her voice barely above a whisper. Jack looked down at her, and she looked back up at him, her green eyes meeting his blue ones. Ellis remembered her conversation with Aaron, and she smiled. "He told me something quite interesting about you."

"And what was that?" Jack said, his voice equally quiet, as the two of them maintained eye contact.

"He told me that you talk about me a lot." Ellis blushed as she spoke, looking down away from Jack, "He even thinks that you like me."

"I guess he's right, I do talk about you a lot." Jack admitted, smiling slightly, and Ellis looked back up at him, returning his smile. He studied her face, their proximity meaning that he noted things which he hadn't before, such as the small freckles on her cheeks or the scar above her left eyebrow. Ellis looked up at Jack, noticing the hints of green in his blue eyes and the light stubble lining his jawline, things she wished she noticed before. She suddenly felt a need to be this close to him all the time.

Before the longing could become unbearable, Jack's lips met Ellis'. The warmth of his mouth sent a current running through her body. Ellis put her hand to his jaw as she lost herself in his minty breath and soft lips. Jack finally understood all those 'first kiss cliché's' because fireworks went off, butterflies escaped and all time stopped as he finally got the kiss he'd been waiting for.

"I've wanted to do that for a while. I'm not sure when it happened, but recently things changed for me. I stopped seeing you as my best friend, and instead as this beautiful, amazing person who I never want to be away from." Jack admitted, once the pair had pulled away from another, "So I guess Aaron was completely right, I really like you Ellis Johnson."

"I really like you too Jack Mercer." She confessed, before kissing him again.


	6. Chapter 6

**I own nothing, but the original characters.**

 **Note: Thank you HapaDoll for you're lovely comment! Made me really smile :) Also thank you for your critique, as I am in fact British I, out of habit, use British words, but will try harder to make sure I use American terms. But please do comment again if you note that I have used an incorrect term, I don't mind. Thanks so much to everyone who is reading and reviewing this! Here's chapter six**

 _One year later_

It was early on Christmas morning, and Ellis was sat awake, too excited to sleep. Evelyn and Andy had decided that they would all spend Christmas day together, and therefore Ellis and Andy had spent the night. It was only six am, but deciding that she had been awake long enough, she snuck from her room, tiptoeing over to Jack's door. Without knocking, she entered the room and crept over to his bed, before rolling into his bed, and under his covers. Jack looked down at her, as he too was already awake, and smiled, pulling her body against his. She cuddled into him, tangling their legs together.

"Morning." He grumbled, his morning voice a lot deeper than his usual tone.

"Morning, and Merry Christmas." Ellis replied, and Jack responded by pressing a soft kiss to her lips. They had been dating just over a year now, making things official the night of the dance. It was a few months later that all their friends and family found out; and everyone was happy for the pair, including Andy. Jack sat up next to her, and pulled her into his side as he held a small box out to her.

"I want to give you this now. Merry Christmas El." He smiled as she hesitantly took the box from him. Ellis opened the small box, and inside was a pair of rose gold, heart shaped earrings; the exact pair she had spotted a few weeks earlier but had not been able to afford. After carefully replacing her current earrings with the new ones, Ellis smiled up at Jack, her long dark hair pushed behind her ears, showcasing the earrings.

"Beautiful." Jack mumbled, causing Ellis to blush. She placed her lips to his cheek, kissing it softly before she got up off his bed, telling him she'd be back soon. Ellis then went into Bobby's room, the room she always stayed in, and grabbed a neatly wrapped box from underneath the bed. She then walked back to Jack's room, jumped into his bed, pulling the blankets around them.

"I couldn't afford much, but here you go." Ellis explained as she handed over the box. Jack unwrapped the paper, and inside there was a simple, silver photo frame. The photo in the frame was of the pair of them after one of Jack's gigs. For just over two years, Jack had been in a band called 'The Spares', and Ellis had attended all of their shows. This photo had been taken a month ago, when the Spares had performed at a local talent show. When the band had won first place, everyone celebrated, and Evelyn had managed to photograph the celebratory kiss between Ellis and Jack.

"I love it El." Jack spoke as he looked up from the photo, and to his girlfriend who was waiting in anticipation for his reaction. Jack set the photo frame onto the table beside his bed, before carefully grabbing Ellis' waist and pulling her into his lap. His lips found hers as she weaved her fingers through her hair, and his hands gripped her waist. Ellis was forced to jump off Jack's lap, sitting next to him again, when there was a knock upon the bedroom door. Evelyn popped her head around the door, smiling at the two teens.

"Morning, and Merry Christmas!" She called, not entirely oblivious to what the pair of them had been up to. The two of them smiled at her, returning the greeting, before following her downstairs, where Andy was making coffee. Jack followed his mother into the living room, whereas Ellis diverted to the kitchen, pulling her Dad into a surprise hug. Andy turned, returning the hug, thankful that his fifteen-year-old daughter still showed him affection, and hadn't become 'too cool' for him. He placed a kiss upon her dark hair, as she nuzzled into his chest,

"Merry Christmas Dad." She mumbled, her words muffled by his shirt.

"Merry Christmas Sweetheart." He replied, squeezing her gently before letting her go. She then walked over to the living room as he finished of the coffees, before following her and handing a cup to Evelyn. In the living room, there was a large tree, surrounded by lots of presents, which they would have to wait to open. Before presents could be opened, they had to wait for their other guests; Jerry and his wife Camille, who had gotten married the previous summer, and Angel, who was currently on a break, and was staying with his on-off girlfriend Sofi Vegara. Evelyn had also called Bobby, leaving him a voice message, inviting him around, but none of them knew whether he'd accept.

By time the clock had struck eight o'clock, the guests had arrived and were taking it in turns opening gifts. As predicted by a few of them, Bobby had not arrived, and Ellis could not help but feel disappointed, missing her elder brother dearly. She loved all the brother's dearly, but she had known Bobby the longest, and having not seen him in almost two years made her sad. It was currently Jerry's turn to open his gift, one of many from Camille, which was revealed to be a mug, with the wording, 'World's Best Dad', printed on it in black. The gifts connotations clicked in Jerry's mind almost immediately, and he turned to his wife giddily, kissing her.

"I'm gonna be a Dad!" He called gleefully, and everyone took it in turns congratulating the couple. Evelyn was particularly excited, looking forward to having a grandchild to spoil rotten. They continued with the gift-giving; Evelyn had bought Jack a new guitar amp, Andy had gotten Ellis a Polaroid camera, Andy a new watch from his daughter and Evelyn a $500 gift voucher, which everyone had contributed towards. Once all the presents were unwrapped and everyone had said their thank you's, Evelyn began preparing dinner, everyone else helping where she allowed them to.

Everyone, except Evelyn, was sat in the living room, catching up on each other's lives, talking about everything and nothing.

"So, El, you're sixteen in two months, you excited?" Angel asked, to which the girl nodded, from her seat between her Dad and Jack.

"I can't believe it, I remember you being four years old, complaining about starting school." Jerry commented, "I don't know about you Andy, but I feel old." He finished, smiling at the older man. Andy glared at Jerry, who only laughed at him.

"Yeah, and I remember you being thirteen years old, and now you're married with a kid on the way, so don't talk to me about feeling old." Andy replied, causing everyone to laugh. Suddenly there was a harsh knock upon the door, and Ellis, who was closest to it, volunteered to answer it. She walked out of the living room, and through the hall to the front door, unlocking and opening it, to reveal Bobby.

"Ass kicker!" He calls excitedly, and she practically jumps on him, as they engulf each other in a hug. Bobby span the young teen around, as everyone else gathered around the pair, eager to greet the male. He let go of Ellis, placing a kiss on her head, before greeting everyone else, starting with his Mother. They all then returned to the living room, where Bobby told them what he had been up to and caught up on everyone else and their lives. He was particularly excited about the news of Jack and Ellis' relationship.

"So, I guess you're not gay then?" Bobby laughed,

"Fuck you Bobby." Jack replied, looking dissatisfied at Bobby's remark. The elder Mercer had too much fun teasing his brothers, especially Jack, the recurring joke being his sexuality. Despite evidence that proved otherwise, Bobby insisted that his younger brother was gay and Jack hated it.

"Jack, language." Evelyn warned and Jack was quick to apologise to his mother. Ellis turned to Jack, her lips to his ear,

"He's just jealous, he's had to spend six months surrounded by nothing but men." She whispered, and both teens burst into laughter.


	7. Chapter 7

**I own nothing but original characters.**

 **NOTE: Thank you to everyone for your lovely comments! I am glad that you are all really enjoying this story :) Just a warning, this chapter does get a little sad! Sorry not sorry, I love a bit of angst ;)**

 _ **Two months later**_

February 6th started out just like any other day. It was a Wednesday, therefore a school/work day. Ellis and Andy woke up at six-thirty, and each got showered, dressed, packed their bags and then ate breakfast together like they always did. At eight o'clock they both left the house, Andy kissed Ellis on the head, she said goodbye and they headed their separate ways. Andy got into his car, and drove to the bank where he worked. Ellis walked around the corner, to Evelyn's house, where she would meet Jack, so they could walk to school together.

"So, it's my birthday soon, what have you got me?" Ellis asked Jack as they began their walk to school. They had just started back at school that a few weeks ago; Ellis was now a sophomore, and Jack was in his junior year. But neither of them were too particularly focused on school as it was Ellis' sixteenth birthday in a few weeks' time.

"I've already told you, it's a surprise, you're just gonna have to wait." He replied, and Ellis jokingly stuck out her tongue. Jack couldn't help but laugh at his girlfriend, as she grabbed his hand interlocking their fingers. They stopped talking about her gift and started planning what they were going to do to celebrate. Once they arrived at school, they kissed goodbye and went to their individual home rooms. The rest of the day passed quickly, and it was just like any other day, the same boring lessons, broken up by breaks where they spent time with friends. Before they knew it, it was the end of the day and they were walking home.

As they turned the corner, and the Mercer house came into view, the day took a dramatic turn. Outside the house was parked a police car. Jack and Ellis looked at each other, a confused expression on their faces. It wasn't a rarity to see a police car outside the house, police turned up frequently, looking for Bobby, Angel or sometimes Jerry, especially when the three of them were younger and caused trouble 24/7. Ellis and Jack picked up their pace, so that they could see what was going on. They walked into the house, dumping their bags and shoes into the hall, and then ventured further into the house. Ellis lead the way, and walked into the kitchen, seeing Evelyn sat at the dining table with a male police officer. Evelyn had been crying, and that caused Ellis to feel uncomfortable, never in her life had she seen Evelyn cry; she was one of the strongest people Ellis knew.

"What's going on?" Ellis asked, stuttering slightly.

"Ellis honey, you need to sit down." Evelyn spoke, her voice thick, providing further evidence that she had been crying.

"What's going on?" Ellis repeated, hating that she was out of the loop,

"Ellis, please, this is something you need to hear, but it's better if you sit down." This time she sat down, albeit hesitantly. Ellis looked back at Jack, who stepped forward, sitting down next to her, taking her hand in his.

"Ms Johnson, I'm afraid we have some devastating news to deliver. This afternoon, at approximately three pm, there was an armed robbery at the Detroit City Bank. Unfortunately, the men opened fire and many people, were killed, including your father." The police officer explained, and Ellis felt her heart break. She'd never been shot, but she'd bet a lot of money that a bullet hurt a lot less than this did. Her Dad was dead, and she never got to say goodbye. Jack squeezed her hand in reassurance, knowing that no matter what he said, nothing would make this situation better.

"Your father died a hero, he was protecting a young pregnant woman when he was shot." The police officer added. Ellis didn't register what happened after that, everything was a blur. Not a single tear fell down her face, she didn't feel sad, angry or anything of the sort, she just felt numb.

Just over a week later, it was Andy's funeral, and everyone he knew had gathered in the church. People were growing increasingly worried about Ellis, due to her reaction, or more accurately lack of reaction to her father's death. It was expected that she would spend day and night crying, going through the stages of grief. But instead she went on as normal; she had gone to school every day, did her homework each night, and every time someone asked if she was okay, she'd smile and tell them that she would be fine. She had not cried once, nor had she shown any other signs of mourning. The only thing that had changed was that now she lived in Evelyn's house, and had taken Bobby's old room.

After the church service, everyone left slowly, paying their respects to Andy as they passed the coffin. The Mercer's were the last to leave, Evelyn and all four of her sons attending the service with Ellis, who at this point was their sister in all but blood. Evelyn lead the boys away from the grave site, so that the coffin could be lowered into the grave and buried. However, both Jack and Bobby stopped when they noticed that Ellis was stood by the coffin, her hand rested on top of it. The five of them watched as she looked down at the wooden box, and for the first time since she had received the news, cried.

"I hate you so much, you know that?" She spoke aloud, and for a second the others were confused about who she was addressing, but soon realised that she was addressing the coffin, "You just had to be the hero didn't you? You had to go and leave, not allowing anyone to say goodbye. That's so selfish of you, people wanted to say goodbye, but you didn't let them. Dad, I hate you-" She sobbed, using her other hand to wipe away her tears, not caring that her makeup was smudging. Jack went to step forward, hoping to comfort his girlfriend, but was stopped by Evelyn.

"Leave her, she needs this." She explained, and Jack nodded reluctantly. It was if the past week she had been living in denial and suddenly realised how real her father's death was.

"I suppose I don't actually hate you, I just hate that I couldn't say goodbye. You were the person I loved more than anything or anyone, and now you're gone. I knew it would happen one day, that's life, you're born, you get old, you die. But you didn't get old Dad, and you won't get old. I miss you already Dad, and it's only been a week, how am I supposed to do this without you? How am I supposed to go on with my life with you not by my side? I need you Dad, I need you to tell me this is all some nightmare and that it's going to be okay." Ellis looked up at the sky briefly before laying her head against the cool wood.

"But it's not going to be okay, is it? And this isn't a nightmare, it's real, and you are really gone. You won't be there to see me graduate, or walk me down the aisle, or meet any of your grandchildren. Why did you have to leave Dad? Please-" Ellis paused before breaking into full sobs, her knees swaying as if threatening to buckle. Evelyn let Jack go and the male sprang forward, taking Ellis into his arms, as she relaxed into his chest, crying her heart out.


	8. Chapter 8

**(Sorry for the very long hiatus guys, my life has been a bit hectic lately, due to illness, family drama and Uni work. But I'm back now! This chapter is a lot happier than the last :) )**

 **Note: I own nothing but the Original Characters**

Ellis' birthday came around quickly, but after her Dad's funeral, she had fell into a temporary depression, and didn't want to celebrate her birthday. She told everyone it didn't feel right, as her Dad had only been dead two weeks, and everyone respected her wishes. Ellis went to school as normal, but once she got home, she retreated to her room, where she put on her radio and just lay in bed, hoping for sleep to come. The house was quiet, Evelyn was grocery shopping, Jack was at band practice, Bobby had left again, Angel was back in service and Jerry was at his own house. Ellis closed her eyes, the soft hum of the traffic lulling her to sleep.

Jack opened the door to Ellis' room ever so slightly, seeing her fast asleep in bed, as the radio played quietly. He walked in and closed the door behind him, before sitting beside her and pushing her hair from her face. They had hardly spoke in the days since the funeral, Ellis' breakdown causing her to feel too sad, or too tired to do anything other than sleep. She had also been on edge quite a lot, and they had even argued a few times, more in the past week than they had in their entire year relationship.

 _"You've been practically ignoring me all day? Why?" Jack asked nonchalantly as he and Ellis sat on his bed, her head in his lap. She had been giving him short, blunt replies and answers all day, and most of their conversations would hit dead ends. Ellis didn't reply this time, just smiled sadly at Jack and shrugged her shoulders ever so slightly._

 _"Ellis, I know you're mourning but please, don't shut me out." Jack begged, "It's not healthy to keep yourself bottled up." Ellis' soft smile turned into a glare, and she sat up, pulling herself from him._

 _"Oh, fuck you Jack, you wouldn't understand." She spat, "I lost my Dad, I'm not just gonna get over it."_

 _"At least you had a Dad." Jack spoke without thinking. Ellis turned to him with a glare angrier than he thought she was capable of._

 _"Don't. Don't even try and pull that." She warned as she stood up, "How dare you." She sobbed and Jack realised that she had begun crying. However, he was equally angry and did nothing but watch as she walked away from him._

That argument had only occurred the night before and the pair hadn't spoken since. Jack was hoping that the contents of the box he held in his hand would help bring them back together, as well as put a smile upon her face. Ellis stirred slightly, her eyes slightly fluttering open, a yawn escaping her lips as she sat up on the bed. She looked up at him, her eyes clouded with sleep and ever so slightly, she smiled at him and he couldn't help but return it. Her eyes travelled to the simple brown box on his lap, and then back to his eyes, silently questioning him.

"I know that you're not really up to celebrating your birthday, and you said no gifts. But I've been working on this for a few months now, and your Dad really helped me out. I really want you to have it." Jack explained and then handed her the box. Ellis took the box, placing it on her lap and then removed the lid, before pulling out the book that lay within it. It was a simple black book, that read 'Ellis Louise Johnson - Born 20th February 1986.' in white lettering. Ellis' eyes flickered up to Jack's face and she saw that he was biting his cheek as to stop himself from smiling.

She looked back down at the book, and opened it up, revealing the first page. The page contained a photo of her, only a few weeks old, sat in a baby-carrier smiling widely, with the words 'First photo' printed underneath. Jack watched in silence as Ellis slowly turned the pages, inspecting each photo that marked a special occasion, such as her first Christmas, first day at school and all her birthdays. The photos included ones of her with her dad, ones with Evelyn and the brothers, and ones with her friends. She turned the page once more and saw that the page was almost blank, the only mark was '16th Birthday' written across the bottom. Ellis looked up at her boyfriend, tears in her eyes as a smile broke over her lips, lighting up her face.

"Thank you." She whispered, and she meant it, this was the greatest gift she had ever received, a book full of her fondest memories with her favourite people. Ellis placed the book to the side and then moved so that she was face to face with Jack. His blue eyes met her green ones and Jack barely had time to think before Ellis placed her hands on each of his cheeks and then pushed her lips to his. It was a quick, gentle kiss, but that was fine for both. Jack smiled at her, and his heart swelled when she smiled back, a real smile, which showed her teeth and reached her eyes, making the green iris' sparkle. Ellis reached over to her shelf, and pulled down her Polaroid camera,

"There's a space that needs filling." She explained to Jack as she next to him, heads close together, so that they would both fit within the frame. They both looked at the camera lens, and smiled widely as Ellis clicked the shutter. After a few seconds the photo fell from the camera and Jack caught it, turning it so they could both see it. Ellis looked up at Jack, his eyes were trained on the photo, a smile upon his lips and she had never felt so lucky. He was the greatest thing that had ever happened to her, and she wished she could find the words to let him know just how much she valued him.

"I love you." The words fell from her lips so easily, despite being the first time she had ever said them. She had never told him that she loved him, but right now, in this moment, she couldn't imagine herself loving anyone else. Jack turned his head and looked at Ellis, inspecting her face before looking her in the eye, deciding that the words that she had uttered were true. He had been waiting to tell her that he loved her, but was afraid of rejection, scared that she wouldn't return his love. But she did.

"I love you too."

 **(Please leave me reviews guys, I really appreciate your feedback! I want to know if people like this story cause I'm not sure if I want to continue to write and publish if people aren't enjoying it!)**


	9. Chapter 9

_**Note:**_ _As usual, I own nothing but original characters._

 _ALSO - I would like to thank_ _Olivia0707_ _for leaving a review on this story. I don't wanna drone on, but I've been feeling a bit uninspired with this fic and believed no one cared about it anymore, so I stopped caring too. But one simple review has let me know that somewhere, at least someone is reading my story :) So thanks x_

Three months later...

It was a Saturday afternoon and along with Chloe and Elishia, Ellis was busy packing up the last of her stuff from her Dad's house. Even though she had come to terms with her father's death, it still took her a while to step foot in the house that they shared. But now here she was packing up her bedroom so that she could completely move into Evelyn's house. In his will, Andy had named Evelyn as Ellis' guardian, and until the teen was eighteen, she would be under the woman's care. Andy had also left the house, and all his money to his only daughter, but she would not receive them until she had graduated from high school.

"Hey El," Chloe called out as she folded up the some of Ellis' clothes and packed them into a suitcase, "Do you think you'll actually live here, or are you gonna sell it on?"

"Well, I have been thinking about it, but I'm not sure." Ellis replied as she looked around the room. She had lived in this house since she was fourteen and had made a lot of memories here, with her Dad, the Mercer's and other friends she had made along the way. Memories played through Ellis' head like a movie, and she smiled, as she thought about her Dad and all the times they had spent in this house, "Do you mind taking those boxes over to Evelyn's and start unpacking them?" Ellis gestured to some boxes that sat outside the door, as she took over for Chloe and began packing clothes. Chloe and Elishia took a box each and left, Ellis promising to catch up with them.

Ellis walked over to the radio that was playing quietly and turned up the volume, until it couldn't be any louder. She smiled and then went back to packing up clothes, singing along to the radio as she folded up her clothes and put them away. A good few minutes passed, when suddenly two arms wrapped around her waist and she let out a shriek, having not heard anyone approaching her. The dark-haired girl turned her head to see Jack, her boyfriend, holding her waist, and laughing at her reaction. She jokingly frowned up at him as she pulled away from him, turning to face him fully.

"It's not funny Jack, you scared me." Ellis pouted, lightly hitting his chest. Jack captured her hand, smiling as he pulled her to chest, wrapping his other arm around her. As she was about to speak, he silenced her, putting his lips to hers, and giving her a kiss that she soon responded to. When they pulled away, Ellis noticed the large smile upon her boyfriend's face, and raised an eyebrow as she rested her hands on his shoulders.

"So, I'm guessing practice went well then?" She asked, referring to the band practice he had just returned from. Jack's smiled widened as he walked backward to the bed, before sitting on it and pulling Ellis onto his lap, his hands gripping her waist.

"Not only did practice go well, but we also got some good news." Jack started, as Ellis sat patiently, "Aaron's Uncle got us a spot performing at an exclusive gig next Friday. There's going to be some important people there, such as talent agents. This might be our big break, first this gig, and then who knows?" Jack finished, not able to hide his excitement.

"Really? I'm so happy for you! You guys deserve a big break, you're all so talented, I know someone in that crowd is gonna fall in love with The Spares." Ellis replies, smiling excitedly, as she takes Jack's face in her hands. He smiles up at her again before kissing her, a gesture which she enthusiastically returned as his hands gripped her waist. The kiss became heated, and soon enough Ellis was lay underneath Jack on the bed, both of their shirts removed as they passionately kissed. Ellis' hands went to the button of Jack's jeans and he stopped, sitting back up, knowing where she was taking this.

"Are you sure about this El? I don't want to rush you." He asked, knowing full well that his girlfriend of almost two years was still a virgin. He'd first had sex a few years back, when he was dragged to a party by his friends, with a girl who was as equally drunk as he was. Jack really loved Ellis, and he wanted her first time to be special, not some drunken escapade like his. Ellis looked up at him, from where she lay on the bed, her hair around her head like a halo, cheeks flushed, lips swollen. She looked deeply into his eyes, and decided that yes, she was sure about this.

"So, Chloe asked if I'm going to move into this house when I'm eighteen, or if I'm gonna sell it on." Ellis began explaining, as she and Jack lay in her bed, their naked bodies covered by sheets, "But I'm not sure you know, I don't know what to do." Ellis finished, looking up at Jack.

"Well I hope you don't plan on us living with Evelyn forever. As much as I love Ma' we're gonna need our own place, you know so we can start our lives together." Jack explained as he absent mindedly played with Ellis' hair. To the male, his comment was nonchalant, but to his girlfriend it was a shock, not expecting such a comment.

"You think about that kind of stuff, our future?" Ellis asked, bemused by Jack's interest in their lives together. Sure, she knew that he loved her, he told her every day, but she never thought he'd spent time thinking about them and their future/

"Of course, I do, I wanna spend the rest of my life with you El." He smiled down at her and she blushed deeply, burying her head into his neck. The pair went back to cuddling, only to be interrupted by an exhausted Chloe and Elishia, who had spent the last hour unpacking.

"Oh, I see how it is Ellis, we're moving your stuff from one house to another, while you and your boyfriend have a quickie?" Chloe ranted at the pair, who just burst into an uncontrollable laughing fit.


End file.
